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Pressure grows for lawmakers to pass postpartum Medicaid extension

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Pressure grows for lawmakers to pass postpartum Medicaid extension

by Kate Royals, Mississippi Today
January 26, 2023

As the first major legislative deadline of 2023 nears, legislative leaders face growing pressure to extend health care coverage for moms on Medicaid from two months to one year.

After Speaker of the House Philip Gunn killed the effort last year, a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers, mothers across the state and health care professionals are ratcheting up the conversation at the Capitol this session about the benefits of the bill for Mississippi mothers and children. Mississippi, as it has for many years in a row, has the highest infant mortality rate and among the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation.

Several lawmakers — Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate — filed bills early this year to extend the Medicaid coverage to one year. This would put Mississippi on the same page as 29 other states, including most of the Southeast. Eight additional states are currently considering full extended coverage or a limited extension of coverage.

The Senate last year overwhelmingly passed the legislation and has since held hearings where experts and physicians spoke to its positive impact on women and babies’ health. Several senators filed bills early this year to extend postpartum Medicaid coverage, and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said he would usher it through his chamber.

And in the House, Rep. Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg, filed a bill this year to extend the coverage. Several of her Republican colleagues, including Rep. Rob Roberson, R-Starkville, co-authored the bill.

“I really think that this is a pro-family position and certainly a pro-life position to take care of these moms who are carrying and delivering and bringing these babies into the world,” McGee said. “Healthy moms equal healthy babies. They go hand in hand, so I really believe it’s currently the most impactful thing we can do for women and children.”

Roberson, who authored the main postpartum bill last year that the House never had the opportunity to vote on, also cited being pro-life as a reason he fully supports the extension.

“I feel like if you’re pro-life, then this is a pro-life issue,” Robertson said. “You support the baby and the mother for as long as we can, and obviously we have financial constraints that enter into this, but I do think in the long run it would be less expensive and more conducive to the health of that child and that mother.”

But that momentum could halt, as it did last year, at the House dais, where Gunn wields immense power. He could, as he did last year, block the issue from ever coming up for a full vote.

Gunn spoke to Mississippi Today this week about his stance on the proposal. He said he believes the Mississippi Division of Medicaid should act — not the Legislature — to extend the coverage.

“My point is, any time I can call an agency and say, ‘Fix this by regulation, it doesn’t take legislation,’ that’s the best way to do it,” Gunn told Mississippi Today on Monday. “Legislation is the hardest way to get it done. If the Division of Medicaid felt like it was a good idea, they could’ve submitted a request a year ago and I believe CMS would grant it in a heartbeat.”

The Division of Medicaid has not taken a stance on extending postpartum coverage. But even a committee appointed by Republican leaders, including Gunn, to advise on Medicaid policy recommended that the Legislature extend postpartum coverage.

Dr. David Reeves, a pediatrician from the Gulf Coast whom Gunn appointed to the committee tasked by law to advise and make recommendations to the agency, penned a letter to state leaders, including Gunn, earlier this year urging them to extend postpartum Medicaid coverage to 12 months. 

“I see moms that lost postnatal care after a few months and ended up pregnant again, or have postpartum depression and couldn’t get treatment,” Reeves told Mississippi Today. “A lot of women do have complications during pregnancy, and they need follow up (care) that will take more than two months — like for gestational diabetes, hypertension … These things need continued coverage.”

Gunn said he had not seen Dr. Reeves’ letter. The Division of Medicaid, which is housed under the governor’s office, did not respond to questions Mississippi Today sent over a five-day period. Medicaid Executive Director Drew Snyder did not return text messages to his personal cell phone about the issue.

Staffers for Gov. Tate Reeves, who oversees the Division of Medicaid and appointed Snyder, also ignored questions from Mississippi Today on the topic of extending postpartum coverage.

In the Mississippi Today interview this week, Gunn said he has asked the Division of Medicaid for data on how continuous coverage during the federal public health emergency impacted health outcomes for women and babies, but he has not received it. Trey Dellinger, Gunn’s chief of staff, told Mississippi Today he wanted to see data that covers whether there was “any actual change in maternal or infant mortality.”

Experts say Gunn’s office hasn’t seen that data because it does not exist yet.

“The research awards for … what the full impact of the postpartum coverage extension has been — those were just awarded, and they’re five year grants,” said Maggie Clark, senior state health policy analyst for Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. “We’re not going to know the impact of this (extended coverage during the Public Health Emergency) nationally and definitely at the state level for many years.”

In Mississippi, for example, the latest maternal mortality data available is for the time period of 2013-2016. The Health Department has said it plans to release a report for 2017 through 2019 soon.

Clark made another point about making decisions around postpartum based solely on mortality numbers.

“The goal of extending postpartum coverage is to support maternal health. There’s a lot more to maternal health than, ‘Did you die?’” she said. “That’s just the absolute bare minimum.”

A recent Texas study, however, showed postpartum women with continuous coverage used twice as many postpartum services, up to 10 times as many preventive, contraceptive and mental health services, and 37% fewer services related to what’s called “short interval pregnancies” within the first year postpartum compared to before continuous coverage was in place.

Short interval pregnancies are defined as becoming pregnant within six months after giving birth – and they are associated with a higher risk for preterm birth. For mothers over 35 with short interval pregnancies, there’s an increased risk of death and serious illness. 

Dellinger, Gunn’s chief of staff, said they had reviewed that study but concluded it was not the data they needed to see.

“The Texas study you sent us, it showed there was increased utilization of health care services,” Dellinger said. “But what it didn’t cover was whether there was any improvement in outcomes.”

But according to Clark, the Texas study is “one of the only, if not the only” such study. She also pointed out the time frame researchers looked at was early in the pandemic (March to December 2020) — when health care utilization as a whole was down.

A reduction in short interval pregnancies, Clark said, is a positive health outcome.

The Texas study also showed an increase in the use of mental health and substance use services. Data shows mental health conditions (including substance use disorder) are the leading underlying cause in maternal mortality.

“The Texas study showing increases in services for mental health and substance use disorder is significant, because these conditions are drivers of maternal mortality,” said Clark.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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Mississippi Today

1964: Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party was formed

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7 hours ago

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April 26, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @MSTODAYnews – 2025-04-26 07:00:00

by Jerry Mitchell, Mississippi Today
April 26, 2025

April 26, 1964

Aaron Henry testifies before the Credentials Committee at the 1964 Democratic National Convention.

Civil rights activists started the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party to challenge the state’s all-white regular delegation to the Democratic National Convention. 

The regulars had already adopted this resolution: “We oppose, condemn and deplore the Civil Rights Act of 1964 … We believe in separation of the races in all phases of our society. It is our belief that the separation of the races is necessary for the peace and tranquility of all the people of Mississippi, and the continuing good relationship which has existed over the years.” 

In reality, Black Mississippians had been victims of intimidation, harassment and violence for daring to try and vote as well as laws passed to disenfranchise them. As a result, by 1964, only 6% of Black Mississippians were permitted to vote. A year earlier, activists had run a mock election in which thousands of Black Mississippians showed they would vote if given an opportunity. 

In August 1964, the Freedom Party decided to challenge the all-white delegation, saying they had been illegally elected in a segregated process and had no intention of supporting President Lyndon B. Johnson in the November election. 

The prediction proved true, with white Mississippi Democrats overwhelmingly supporting Republican candidate Barry Goldwater, who opposed the Civil Rights Act. While the activists fell short of replacing the regulars, their courageous stand led to changes in both parties.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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Mississippi River flooding Vicksburg, expected to crest on Monday

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April 25, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @alxrzr – 2025-04-25 16:04:00

by Alex Rozier, Mississippi Today
April 25, 2025

Warren County Emergency Management Director John Elfer said Friday floodwaters from the Mississippi River, which have reached homes in and around Vicksburg, will likely persist until early May. Elfer estimated there areabout 15 to 20 roads underwater in the area.

A truck sits in high water after the owner parked, then boated to his residence on Chickasaw Road in Vicksburg as a rising Mississippi River causes backwater flooding, Friday, April 25, 2025.

“We’re about half a foot (on the river gauge) from a major flood,” he said. “But we don’t think it’s going to be like in 2011, so we can kind of manage this.”

The National Weather projects the river to crest at 49.5 feet on Monday, making it the highest peak at the Vicksburg gauge since 2020. Elfer said some residents in north Vicksburg — including at the Ford Subdivision as well as near Chickasaw Road and Hutson Street — are having to take boats to get home, adding that those who live on the unprotected side of the levee are generally prepared for flooding.

A rising Mississippi River causing backwater flooding near Chickasaw Road in Vicksburg, Friday, April 25, 2025.
Old tires aligned a backyard as a deterrent to rising water north of Vicksburg along U.S. 61, Friday, April 25, 2025.
As the Mississippi River rises, backwater flooding creeps towards a home located on Falk Steel Road in Vicksburg, Friday, April 25, 2025.

“There are a few (inundated homes), but we’ve mitigated a lot of them,” he said. “Some of the structures have been torn down or raised. There are a few people that still live on the wet side of the levee, but they kind of know what to expect. So we’re not too concerned with that.”

The river first reached flood stage in the city — 43 feet — on April 14. State officials closed Highway 465, which connects the Eagle Lake community just north of Vicksburg to Highway 61, last Friday.

Flood waters along Kings Point Road in Vicksburg, Friday, April 25, 2025.

Elfer said the areas impacted are mostly residential and he didn’t believe any businesses have been affected, emphasizing that downtown Vicksburg is still safe for visitors. He said Warren County has worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency to secure pumps and barriers.

“Everybody thus far has been very cooperative,” he said. “We continue to tell people stay out of the flood areas, don’t drive around barricades and don’t drive around road close signs. Not only is it illegal, it’s dangerous.”

NWS projects the river to stay at flood stage in Vicksburg until May 6. The river reached its record crest of 57.1 feet in 2011.

The boat launch area is closed and shored up on Levee Street in Vicksburg as the Mississippi River rises, Friday, April 25, 2025.
The boat launch area (right) is closed and under water on Levee Street in Vicksburg as the Mississippi River rises, Friday, April 25, 2025.
City of Vicksburg workers shore up the bank along Levee Street as the Mississippi River rises, Friday, April 25, 2025.
The old pedestrian bridge spanning the Mississippi River in Vicksburg, Friday, April 25, 2025.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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With domestic violence law, victims ‘will be a number with a purpose,’ mother says

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23 hours ago

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April 25, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @MSTODAYnews – 2025-04-25 15:07:00

by Mina Corpuz, Mississippi Today
April 25, 2025

Joslin Napier. Carlos Collins. Bailey Mae Reed. 

They are among Mississippi domestic violence homicide victims whose family members carried their photos as the governor signed a bill that will establish a board to study such deaths and how to prevent them. 

Tara Gandy, who lost her daughter Napier in Waynesboro in 2022, said it’s a moment she plans to tell her 5-year-old grandson about when he is old enough. Napier’s presence, in spirit, at the bill signing can be another way for her grandson to feel proud of his mother. 

“(The board) will allow for my daughter and those who have already lost their lives to domestic violence … to no longer be just a number,” Gandy said. “They will be a number with a purpose.” 

Family members at the April 15 private bill signing included Ashla Hudson, whose son Collins, died last year in Jackson. Grandparents Mary and Charles Reed and brother Colby Kernell attended the event in honor of Bailey Mae Reed, who died in Oxford in 2023. 

Joining them were staff and board members from the Mississippi Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the statewide group that supports shelters and advocated for the passage of Senate Bill 2886 to form a Domestic Violence Facility Review Board. 

The law will go into effect July 1, and the coalition hopes to partner with elected officials who will make recommendations for members to serve on the board. The coalition wants to see appointees who have frontline experience with domestic violence survivors, said Luis Montgomery, public policy specialist for the coalition. 

A spokesperson from Gov. Tate Reeves’ office did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Establishment of the board would make Mississippi the 45th state to review domestic violence fatalities. 

Montgomery has worked on passing a review board bill since December 2023. After an unsuccessful effort in 2024, the coalition worked to build support and educate people about the need for such a board. 

In the recent legislative session, there were House and Senate versions of the bill that unanimously passed their respective chambers. Authors of the bills are from both political parties. 

The review board is tasked with reviewing a variety of documents to learn about the lead up and circumstances in which people died in domestic violence-related fatalities, near fatalities and suicides – records that can include police records, court documents, medical records and more. 

From each review, trends will emerge and that information can be used for the board to make recommendations to lawmakers about how to prevent domestic violence deaths. 

“This is coming at a really great time because we can really get proactive,” Montgomery said. 

Without a board and data collection, advocates say it is difficult to know how many people have died or been injured in domestic-violence related incidents.

A Mississippi Today analysis found at least 300 people, including victims, abusers and collateral victims, died from domestic violence between 2020 and 2024. That analysis came from reviewing local news stories, the Gun Violence Archive, the National Gun Violence Memorial, law enforcement reports and court documents. 

Some recent cases the board could review are the deaths of Collins, Napier and Reed. 

In court records, prosecutors wrote that Napier, 24, faced increased violence after ending a relationship with Chance Fabian Jones. She took action, including purchasing a firearm and filing for a protective order against Jones.

Jones’s trial is set for May 12 in Wayne County. His indictment for capital murder came on the first anniversary of her death, according to court records. 

Collins, 25, worked as a nurse and was from Yazoo City. His ex-boyfriend Marcus Johnson has been indicted for capital murder and shooting into Collins’ apartment. Family members say Collins had filed several restraining orders against Johnson. 

Johnson was denied bond and remains in jail. His trial is scheduled for July 28 in Hinds County.  

He was a Jackson police officer for eight months in 2013. Johnson was separated from the department pending disciplinary action leading up to immediate termination, but he resigned before he was fired, Jackson police confirmed to local media. 

Reed, 21, was born and raised in Michigan and moved to Water Valley to live with her grandparents and help care for her cousin, according to her obituary. 

Kylan Jacques Phillips was charged with first degree murder for beating Reed, according to court records. In February, the court ordered him to undergo a mental evaluation to determine if he is competent to stand trial, according to court documents. 

At the bill signing, Gandy said it was bittersweet and an honor to meet the families of other domestic violence homicide victims.

“We were there knowing we are not alone, we can travel this road together and hopefully find ways to prevent and bring more awareness about domestic violence,” she said.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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